


Complications

by Nyxate



Category: Compilation of Final Fantasy VII
Genre: Established Relationship...?, M/M, Turkstober, complicated relationship, is more accurate i suppose, this is for turkstober kind of so i'll add more tags as it goes
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-10
Updated: 2020-10-10
Packaged: 2021-03-08 04:53:42
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,803
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26929957
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Nyxate/pseuds/Nyxate
Summary: Rude like Reno. Reno likes Rude. It's that easy, right? No, of course it isn't. It's never that easy.A compilation of short (haha) stories following Reno and Rude's complicated relationship with Turkstober prompts. Definitely won't be daily since I'm starting late in the first place so we'll see how far this actually goes.
Relationships: Reno/Rude (Compilation of FFVII)
Comments: 6
Kudos: 15





	Complications

**Author's Note:**

> yes i am starting turkstober on the 10th i did actually start this on the first but uhhhhh writing is hard also it's 9 am so please forgive me. yes i know i also have another renorude fic to finish don't look at me i'm working on it take this for now thank u mwah

“Hey...Rude?”

Rude looked up from the book he was reading and towards where the familiar voice was calling him. Reno, who was currently sitting at the computer desk trying to finish the report that he promised he would do, was no longer typing anything and instead staring down at the keys. Rude had noted that the sound of typing stopped about three minutes ago, but hadn’t looked up because Reno had a particularly hard time focusing on reports and would frequently pause his typing because of it. That’s why Rude usually offered to do the reports Reno was given, something he started doing after the first ten times Reno whined to him and batted his eyelashes while asking him to write them. At first, he had just thought it was because Reno was lazy and didn’t want to do them- which was partially true, but it stemmed off of him being unable to focus on them. 

Today, though, Reno insisted on doing the report of their mission that happened yesterday. They got back late last night and so Rude was unable to do it when they got back like he usually did. He was surprised when Reno said he would do it, but right from the moment they woke up he could tell something was...off, with the redhead. Rude was able to read Reno pretty well now, even if it wasn’t entirely it was enough to know he was in a weird mood today. Which was fine- nothing Rude hadn’t seen before. Reno was finicky with his moods sometimes, but Rude got used to it. Today seemed like an off day for him so Rude had decided to just let him do as he pleased, not wanting to accidentally set him off and have Reno think that he thought he was incapable.

Rude put his bookmark in the book he was reading, slowly closing it before placing it in his lap. He did this to give Reno a moment to think, and to see if the other was going to look at him. When the redhead didn’t, that’s when he spoke up. “What’s up?” From where Rude was sitting on the couch, he could see Reno’s eyebrows furrow slightly when he answered him. Something was clearly bothering him, Rude just wasn’t sure what.   
  
“We’re…” Reno paused, Rude being able to see him bite his lower lip as he stopped himself from speaking. That was something else that Reno did when he was in one of his moods- he spoke less, not keeping eye contact when he did speak and he would pause frequently, unsure of his own words. It was the only time Reno was remotely quiet. Rude noticed that Reno’s hands were under the desk, curling into the hem of his suit jacket. “...partners, right?”

Rude wasn’t sure where Reno had been going when he started speaking, but that was definitely not the direction he thought it was going in. Partners...that was a word that had changed over the course of their partnership. At first it was just a word that meant they were stuck dealing with each other. Then it was being actual work partners-  _ friends, _ even- being coordinated and spending way too much time around each other because they were always sent on missions together. Now? They were... _ partners. _ Romantically, he supposed, even though neither of them had said anything officially. Reno practically lived with him, they slept in the same bed, they’ve kissed gods know how many times, amongst plenty of other things that people who were just  _ friends _ didn’t normally do. It just kind of...happened, plenty of things leading up to it and it slowly fell into a routine that was just now their lives.   
  
To be honest, Rude didn’t mind, because he liked Reno. He was pretty sure Reno liked him too, but Reno wasn’t the best at expressing certain feelings and that was something Rude had learned pretty early on in their partnership. It wasn’t a bad thing, Reno just had some...issues, that he needed to work out, and that was alright. Rude still wasn’t sure of Reno’s past, since it wasn’t something that was ever brought up and Rude wasn’t too keen on bringing it up out of the blue. He’d rather wait for Reno to bring it up himself so he didn’t feel like he was treading on a thin line.

“I’m sorry,” The sound of Reno’s voice snapped Rude out of his thoughts, not sure how long he had been silent for but he was sure it hadn’t been more than thirty seconds or so. Thirty seconds was a long time to Reno though. “Sorry. Forget I said anything.” Rude’s expression softened, feeling bad that he didn’t reply right away but he had been at a bit of a loss for words at first. He lifted his book out of his lap and put it on the arm of the couch before speaking.

“Reno, look at me.” Rude’s voice was soft, inviting, and he could see Reno’s eyes look at him even though the other didn’t turn his head at first. The other’s fingers curled tighter into his suit jacket before slowly letting go and turning his head a little to look at Rude. It was always strange to see Reno without a grin on his face and Rude swore he would never get used to it. Maybe it was because he didn’t like it when Reno was upset. “Come here.” Rude didn’t move or anything, knowing that Reno would come over in due time if he really wanted to. It only took about a minute of silence between them before Reno stood up, slowly making his way over to the couch. He eyed Rude’s lap, as if he was trying to make a decision and ended up just sitting next to him.

Rude watched Reno as he stared at the hands he had folded in his lap. There was another minute of silence before Rude decided to speak up again. “Lay down.” It wasn’t a question, or a suggestion- more of a command, albeit gentle. More often than not, when Reno was like this, he listened to him. Rude was aware that his presence was very grounding for Reno, because Reno didn’t have the healthiest coping mechanisms and Rude was there to deter those from happening.

Just as he thought, Reno hesitated for a second before carefully lowering himself and shifting into a position where he was laying down with his head resting in Rude’s lap. Reno was facing away from him though, which was fine. Rude was still able to reach down and very gently run his fingers through Reno’s hair, trying to relax him as much as he could. Reno was like a cat in that sense (amongst many others), finding relaxation in Rude petting his hair and threading his fingers through the long red strands. Only Rude though- if anyone else tried they’d be met with a hard glare and their hand getting smacked away.

A silence fell between them, Rude listening carefully to Reno’s breathing and Reno probably doing the same. Usually, Rude liked moments like these, comfortable silences with them basking in each other’s presence. It was a little different this time though, the silence between them only existing because Reno was staying quiet and Rude didn’t want to say anything wrong to further upset him. Only after another minute of that did he finally speak up. “You know,” He spoke softly, not stopping the movement of his fingers through the strands of his hair, “We are partners.”

There was a slight shift from Reno, but otherwise nothing else was said. Rude took that as a sign that he didn’t want to talk yet, so he continued.

“I don’t think we were real partners when we were paired together.” Rude said with a quiet laugh, which caused Reno to curl into himself a little. He took a long strand of red and twirled it mindlessly around his finger as he continued speaking. “But I think...we are partners now. Real partners.” A pause, then, “Have been for a bit I think.”

Another wave of silence filled the room and Rude waited patiently for Reno’s reponse, if he was going to give one. It was fine if he didn’t, Rude half expecting the other to fall asleep in his lap, but just as he was thinking about it Reno started to shift so he was now facing Rude. Or, well, more like staring into the cloth of his suit but that was fine. The redhead’s brows were still furrowed but Rude said nothing, just waiting for Reno to say whatever was on his mind.

“...you really mean that?” Reno’s voice was quiet, small,  _ weak- _ unlike anything Rude has ever heard come out of his mouth before. Sure, Rude has seen him vulnerable plenty of times now in a few different ways but something just seemed so...different.

“Of course I mean that.” Rude pushed back Reno’s bangs with his hand, getting them out of the other’s face so he could get a good look at him. Reno didn’t dare look at him, though, eyes unfocused while staring at Rude’s clothed torso. Once more, a bout of silence was caught between them but it was only because Reno kept opening his mouth slightly as if to say something before closing it and biting his bottom lip. He did that one, two, then three times before finally speaking up.

“I…” Reno paused, chewing on his tongue, “...had a dream.” Rude could tell by the way he said dream that it wasn’t good, perhaps even a nightmare but he knew Reno didn’t like to use that word, or even admit he had them sometimes. He gave a hum to the other in response, signaling for him to continue on. It took Reno a moment to get his words together, but eventually he continued talking. “You...got sick of me, because I don’t do anything, and you went to get a new partner and you kicked me out of your apartment.” Suddenly the words were spilling from Reno’s lips, like a dam had broken. “You said you didn’t want to see me again because I don’t know how to get my act together and I always cause trouble and I’m not actually good at anything and, and…”

Reno trailed off, his voice shaking and Rude could see him grabbing at the hem of his suit jacket again, just like he was earlier. Reaching his free hand up, Rude carefully ran it down Reno’s arm until he reached his hand, brushing his thumb against it. “Is that why you offered to do the report?” The only response Rude got was a small nod and he let a quiet sigh out through his nose. “Reno…” So a dream was the whole reason he was acting off today. He wished Reno had told him earlier so he could’ve just said how absolutely untrue all of that was. Rude would never dream of getting another partner. Reno was so important to him, much more than the redhead probably even realized.

“I know it’s dumb. ’M sorry. I…”

“It’s not stupid.” Rude spoke quietly, bringing his hand away from Reno’s own so he could reach up and carefully cup the other’s cheek with it, gently forcing him to look up. Reno looked like he was about to cry, which it wasn’t like Rude hadn’t seen him cry before but he hated seeing it. Rude’s expression softened more (if that was even possible), rubbing his thumb against Reno’s cheek in a slow rhythm and waited to see if Reno was going to look away. When he didn’t after a few seconds, Rude gave a small smile. “You don’t have to worry about things like that.”   
  
Reno stayed quiet, opening his mouth once to say something before shutting it and swallowing down whatever he was going to say. The redhead didn’t look away from him though, Rude noticed, staring intently at him with glossy eyes. Figuring Reno wasn’t going to say anything else, he softly said, “The only partner I ever want is you.”   
  
At that, Reno’s eyes widened just slightly before he finally looked away, letting his eyes fall shut. He curled into himself a little, moving his face so he could hide it in Rude’s clothes. Rude pulled his hand away from Reno’s face and back down to Reno’s own, lacing their fingers together. He continued to stroke his hair, not commenting on the way that he could tell Reno’s breaths were shaky and erratic. Rude knew that Reno didn’t like it when people pointed out that he was upset or crying, and by people he meant himself because Reno didn’t let himself be that vulnerable around anyone else.

So after a few minutes of silence and Reno occasionally squeezing his hand, Rude decided to speak up again. “How about I finished that report for you?” He squeezed Reno’s hand for a brief moment just like the other had been doing to him, to reassure him that he was here. “And after that we can go get something to eat.” Reno curled into himself slightly, letting out a shaky sigh that Rude could feel through the fabric of his clothes. “Or we can go home. I don’t think we have anything else to do today.”   
  
It was barely there, but Rude could see and feel the tiniest nod from the other. That was a good enough answer for him. He didn’t dare move yet though, waiting for Reno to get up whenever he wanted to. It took a few minutes before the redhead finally removed his face from Rude’s clothes, but it wasn’t like Rude minded anyways. He still stared at his torso, blinking slowly once, then twice, before finally saying something. “Rude..?”   
  
“Yes?” Rude answered, giving Reno’s hand another squeeze. The other fell silent for a moment, Rude surprised to see him glance up at him and saw a tiny, sincere smile catch his lips. His eyes were still glossy, long lashes wet and clumped together from the unseen tears he had shed but despite that, Rude still thought he was the prettiest person in the world. Reno reached his free hand up to grab at the one Rude had carding through his hair. Rude let him move it to wherever he wanted, which was to his chest and holding it close, Rude being able to feel his heartbeat.

“You’re the only partner I ever want too.” Reno said with a quiet voice, which was something he did very rarely. “So you can’t ever leave me.”   
  
A faint laugh escaped Rude’s lips, giving Reno’s hand another squeeze. “I won’t.”

“Promise?” Reno’s voice was back to being small, his smile faltering. Rude brought Reno’s hand up to his lips, pressing a small kiss to it which made a cute shocked expression fall on Reno’s face and he averted his eyes.

“I promise.” He mumbled against the skin of Reno’s hand, kissing it once more before bringing it away and back to where it was laying before. “Because we’re partners, right?”

Reno laid there for a moment, Rude being able to see the smile find its way back to his lips. The redhead shifted so he was laying on his back, looking directly up at Rude as he freed his other hand from Rude’s hold to bring it up so he could have both of his hands on Rude’s own. He rubbed his thumbs against Rude’s palm, which was a sensation that Rude always enjoyed when the other did it.

“Yeah, we are.” Reno said with a tone of voice that could only be described as sweet, something Rude heard every so often from him. Rude’s eyes followed Reno’s hand as he reached his arm up, placing his hand behind his neck and Rude quickly understood what he was doing. He leaned down a bit as Reno lifted himself to meet him halfway, bringing their lips together in a chaste kiss. He could feel Reno squeeze his hand once more and he did the same back, getting a pleased hum from the redhead. It was Reno who pulled away slowly, opening his pretty eyes to look up at Rude through still wet lashes, their lips still brushing together when he spoke. “Partners.”

The redhead pressed their lips together once more for a brief kiss, bringing his other hand to cup Rude’s cheek and brush his thumb against his beard in a slow, affectionate way. When they pulled away his voice was almost a whisper, as if it was a secret when he said, “The best partners,” before connecting their lips together again, continuing the steady stream of secret kisses they shared so often.

**Author's Note:**

> like comment & subscribe i need the encouragement so badly thank u


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